Method for producing h-shaped steel

ABSTRACT

An H-shaped steel product having a larger flange width as compared with conventional ones is efficiently and stably produced by performing flat shaping and rolling of a large-size raw blank without bringing about problems such as elongation in a web height direction and deformation of a flange corresponding part. A rough rolling step includes an edging rolling step, and a flat rolling step of performing rolling of a web part by rotating the material to be rolled after completion of the edging rolling step, upper and lower caliber rolls of at least one caliber of calibers configured to perform the flat rolling step include recessed parts configured to form a raised part at a middle of a web part of the material to be rolled, the recessed parts being provided at roll barrel length middle parts, the caliber configured to perform the flat rolling step further includes a raised part eliminating caliber configured to reduce the raised part and perform inner size widening of the web part of the material to be rolled on the material to be rolled in which the raised part is formed, rolling and shaping in the raised part eliminating caliber is performed on the material to be rolled after forming the raised part in the caliber having the recessed parts configured to form the raised part, and rolling and shaping of forming the raised part is not performed after a reduction of the raised part.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is based upon and claims the benefit of priority of the prior Japanese Patent Application No. 2018-022105, filed in Japan on Feb. 9, 2018, the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.

The present invention relates to a production method for producing H-shaped steel using, for example, a slab having a rectangular cross section or the like as a raw material.

TECHNICAL FIELD Background Art

In the case of producing H-shaped steel, a raw material such as a slab or a bloom extracted from a heating furnace is shaped into a raw blank (a material to be rolled in a so-called dog-bone shape) by a rough rolling mill (BD), a web and flanges of the raw blank are subjected to reduction in thickness by an intermediate universal rolling mill, and flanges of the material to be rolled are subjected to width reduction and forging and shaping of end surfaces by an edger rolling mill close to the intermediate universal rolling mill. Then, an H-shaped steel product is shaped by a finishing universal rolling mill.

In such a method for producing H-shaped steel, for shaping the raw blank in the so-called dog-bone shape from the slab raw material having a rectangular cross section, there is a known technique of creating splits on slab end surfaces in a first caliber at a rough rolling step, then widening the splits or making the splits deeper in second and subsequent calibers, and eliminating the splits on the slab end surfaces in calibers subsequent thereto (refer to, for example, Patent Document 1).

Besides, in production of the H-shaped steel, it is known that after so-called edging rolling of edging the end surfaces of the raw material such as a slab (slab end surfaces), flat shaping and rolling is performed in which the material to be rolled is rotated by 90° or 270° and reduction of a web corresponding part is performed. In this flat shaping and rolling, reduction and shaping of a flange corresponding part is performed together with the reduction of the web corresponding part, and recently, in consideration of a demand for a large-size H-shaped steel product, when a large-size raw material is used as a material to be rolled, various problems such as elongation in a web height direction and deformation of the flange corresponding part may arise in general flat shaping and rolling, and correction of the shape is sometimes required. Concretely, there is a concern about a phenomenon that with the reduction of the web corresponding part, the web corresponding part elongates in the longitudinal direction and the flange corresponding part also elongates in the longitudinal direction drawn by the elongation of the web corresponding part, resulting in a decrease in thickness of the flange corresponding part.

Regarding such flat shaping and rolling, for example, Patent Document 2 discloses a technique of selectively performing reduction on the web corresponding part, in which an unreduced portion is provided at the middle of the web corresponding part, a formed protruding part (corresponding to a raised part of the present invention) is thereafter eliminated, and the web corresponding part is widened, thereby efficiently producing large-size H-shaped steel.

PRIOR ART DOCUMENT Patent Document

[Patent Document 1] Japanese Laid-open Patent Publication No. H7-88501

[Patent Document 2] Japanese Laid-open Patent Publication No. S57-146405

DISCLOSURE OF THE INVENTION Problems to be Solved by the Invention

As described above, recently, with an increase in size of structures and the like, production of a large-size H-shaped steel product is desired. In particular, a product having flanges, which greatly contribute to strength and rigidity of H-shaped steel, made wider as compared with conventional ones is desired. To produce the H-shaped steel product with widened flanges, it is necessary to shape a material to be rolled having a larger flange width as compared with a conventional one from the shaping at the rough rolling step.

However, for example, in the technique disclosed in Patent Document 1 described above, in the method of creating the splits on the end surfaces of the raw material such as a slab (slab end surfaces), edging the end surfaces, and performing the rough rolling utilizing the width spread, there is a limit in broadening of the flanges. Namely, in order to broaden the flanges in conventional rough rolling methods, techniques such as wedge designing (designing of a split angle), reduction adjustment, and lubrication adjustment are used to improve the width spread, but since none of the methods greatly contributes to a flange width, it is known that the rate of width spread, which represents the rate of a spread amount of the flange width to an edging amount, is about 0.8 even under a condition that the efficiency at the initial stage of edging is the highest, and decreases as the spread amount of the flange width increases under a condition that edging is repeated in the same caliber, and finally becomes about 0.5. It is also conceivable to increase the size of the raw material such as a slab itself to increase the edging amount, but, there are circumstances where sufficient broadening of product flanges is not realized because there are device limits in facility scale, reduction amount, and so on of the rough rolling mill.

Further, when producing the large-size H-shaped steel product, a large-size raw blank is sometimes rolled and shaped in the rough rolling step. In the case of rolling and shaping the large-size raw blank in a method different from the conventional one and shaping the shape of the raw blank into a shape closer to the H-shaped steel, it is known that there arise problems such as elongation in a web height direction and deformation of a flange corresponding part when the flat shaping and rolling is performed by the technique described in the above Patent Document 2.

The present inventors evaluated a thickening property of the flanges in a uniform process including a process of eliminating the unreduced portion in the subsequent process in addition to the preceding process of having a recessed portion for generating the unreduced portion (a later-described raised part) on the web. Concretely, the present inventors have found out that, as explained in a later-described embodiment of the present invention, the width of the unreduced portion is set to a width of 25% or more and 50% or less of a web part inner size of the material to be rolled, for example, when a 300 thick slab is used as a raw material to increase the generation efficiency of the flanges, and reached the present invention.

In consideration of the above circumstances, an object of the present invention is to provide a technique for efficiently and stably producing an H-shaped steel product having a larger flange width as compared with conventional ones by performing flat shaping and rolling of a large-size raw blank without bringing about problems such as elongation in a web height direction and deformation of a flange corresponding part one in a rough rolling step using a caliber when producing H-shaped steel.

Means for Solving the Problems

To achieve the above object, according to the present invention, there is provided a method for producing H-shaped steel, the method including: a rough rolling step; an intermediate rolling step; and a finish rolling step, wherein: the rough rolling step includes: an edging rolling step of rolling and shaping a material to be rolled into a predetermined almost dog-bone shape; and a flat rolling step of performing rolling of a web part by rotating the material to be rolled after completion of the edging rolling step by 90° or 270°; upper and lower caliber rolls of at least one caliber of calibers configured to perform the flat rolling step include recessed parts configured to form a raised part at a middle of a web part of the material to be rolled, the recessed parts being provided at roll barrel length middle parts of the upper and lower caliber rolls; the caliber configured to perform the flat rolling step further includes a raised part eliminating caliber configured to reduce the raised part and perform an inner size widening of the web part of the material to be rolled on the material to be rolled in which the raised part is formed; rolling and shaping in the raised part eliminating caliber is performed on the material to be rolled after forming the raised part in the caliber having the recessed parts configured to form the raised part; and rolling and shaping of forming the raised part is not performed after a reduction of the raised part.

It is also adoptable that the rolling and shaping in the raised part eliminating caliber is performed in a plurality of passes; and the rolling and shaping is performed in a state where a flange inner surface of the material to be rolled and a caliber roll are brought into contact with each other in at least one or more passes of the plurality of passes.

It is also adoptable that the rolling and shaping in the raised part eliminating caliber is performed in a plurality of passes; and the rolling and shaping is performed in a state where a flange inner surface of the material to be rolled and a caliber roll are brought into contact with each other in a first pass of the plurality of passes.

It is also adoptable that in the rolling and shaping in the raised part eliminating caliber, elimination of the raised part is performed partially, and a remaining raised part is eliminated by rolling and shaping in an optional caliber at a subsequent stage.

A width of the raised part formed in the flat rolling step may also be set to 25% or more and 50% or less of a web part inner size of the material to be rolled.

A reduction ratio with respect to the raised part in the raised part eliminating caliber may also be 2.1 or less.

It is also adoptable that the edging step is performed by a plurality of calibers, the number of the plurality of calibers being four or more; shaping in one or a plurality of passes is performed on the material to be rolled in the plurality of calibers; a first caliber and a second caliber of the plurality of calibers are formed with projections configured to create splits vertical to a width direction of the material to be rolled so as to form divided parts at end parts of the material to be rolled; and the calibers after a third caliber of the plurality of calibers are formed with projections configured to come into contact with the splits and sequentially bend the formed divided parts.

Effect of the Invention

According to the present invention, it becomes possible to, in the rough rolling step using a caliber when producing H-shaped steel, efficiently and stably produce an H-shaped steel product having a larger flange width as compared with conventional ones by performing flat shaping and rolling of a large-size raw blank without bringing about problems such as elongation in a web height direction and deformation of a flange corresponding part.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a schematic explanatory view about a production line for H-shaped steel.

FIG. 2 is a schematic explanatory view of a first caliber.

FIG. 3 is a schematic explanatory view of a second caliber.

FIG. 4 is a schematic explanatory view of a third caliber.

FIG. 5 is a schematic explanatory view of a fourth caliber.

FIG. 6 is a schematic explanatory view of a fifth caliber.

FIG. 7 is a schematic explanatory view of a sixth caliber.

FIG. 8 are schematic explanatory views in a case where the rolling and shaping is performed in a state where an inner surface of flange parts and a roll are brought into contact with each other in rolling and shaping in the sixth caliber.

FIG. 9 is a schematic explanatory view about a desirable configuration of the sixth caliber.

FIG. 10 are schematic views based on simulations indicating shapes of materials to be rolled after elimination of the respective raised parts in pass schedules in Table 3 and Table 4.

FIG. 11 is a graph indicating the relation between an escaping percentage and a flange width increase/decrease rate after the shaping of the H-shaped raw blank.

FIG. 12 is an explanatory view regarding warpage of a material to be rolled.

FIG. 13 is a graph indicating the relation between warpage and a web thickness.

FIG. 14 is a graph indicating the result of comparing and studying a case of poor material passage due to an occurrence of warpage and a case of good material passage due to no occurrence of warpage in the relation between a thickness after reduction of reduced portions and a height of a raised part.

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION

Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be explained while referring to the drawings. Note that in this description and the drawings, components having substantially the same functional configuration are denoted by the same codes to omit duplicated explanation.

FIG. 1 is an explanatory view about a production line T for H-shaped steel including a rolling facility 1 according to the present embodiment. As illustrated in FIG. 1, in the production line T, a heating furnace 2, a sizing mill 3, a rough rolling mill 4, an intermediate universal rolling mill 5, and a finishing universal rolling mill 8 are arranged in order from the upstream side. Further, an edger rolling mill 9 is provided close to the intermediate universal rolling mill 5. Note that, hereinafter, a steel material in the production line T is collectively described as a “material to be rolled A” for the sake of explanation, and its shape is appropriately illustrated using broken lines, oblique lines and the like in some cases in the respective drawings.

As illustrated in FIG. 1, in the production line T, for example, a rectangular cross-section raw material (a later-described material to be rolled A) being a slab 11 extracted from the heating furnace 2 is subjected to rough rolling in the sizing mill 3 and the rough rolling mill 4. Then, the rectangular cross-section raw material is subjected to intermediate rolling in the intermediate universal rolling mill 5. During the intermediate rolling, reduction is performed on a flange tip part (a flange corresponding part 12) of the material to be rolled by the edger rolling mill 9 as necessary. In a normal case, an edging caliber and a so-called flat shaping caliber of thinning a web portion to form the shape of a flange part are engraved on rolls of the sizing mill 3 and the rough rolling mill 4, and an H-shaped raw blank 13 is shaped by reverse rolling in a plurality of passes through those calibers, and the H-shaped raw blank 13 is subjected to application of reduction in a plurality of passes using a rolling mill train composed of two rolling mills of the intermediate universal rolling mill 5 and the edger rolling mill 9, whereby an intermediate material 14 is shaped. The intermediate material 14 is then subjected to finish rolling into a product shape in the finishing universal rolling mill 8, whereby an H-shaped steel product 16 is produced.

Here, a slab thickness T of the slab 11 extracted from the heating furnace 2 is, for example, within a range of 290 mm or more and 310 mm or less. This is the dimension of a slab raw material called a so-called 300 thick slab used when producing a large-size H-shaped steel product.

Next, caliber configurations and caliber shapes engraved on the sizing mill 3 and the rough rolling mill 4 illustrated in FIG. 1 will be explained hereinafter while referring to the drawings. FIG. 2 to FIG. 7 are schematic explanatory views about calibers engraved on the sizing mill 3 and the rough rolling mill 4 which perform a rough rolling step. All of a first caliber to a sixth caliber explained herein may be engraved, for example, on the sizing mill 3, or six calibers of the first caliber to the sixth caliber may be engraved separately on the sizing mill 3 and the rough rolling mill 4. Specifically, the first caliber to the sixth caliber may be engraved across both the sizing mill 3 and the rough rolling mill 4, or may be engraved on one of the rolling mills. At the rough rolling step in production of standard H-shaped steel, shaping in one or a plurality of passes is performed in each of the calibers.

Besides, a case where there are six calibers to be engraved will be described as an example in the present embodiment, and the number of the calibers does not always need to be six, but may be a plural number such as six or more. For example, a configuration that a general widening rolling caliber is provided at a stage subsequent to a later-described sixth caliber K6 is adoptable. In short, the caliber configuration only needs to be suitable for shaping the H-shaped raw blank 13. Note that in FIG. 2 to FIG. 7, a schematic final pass shape of the material to be rolled A in shaping in each caliber is illustrated by broken lines.

FIG. 2 is a schematic explanatory view of a first caliber K1. The first caliber K1 is engraved on an upper caliber roll 20 and a lower caliber roll 21 which are a pair of horizontal rolls, and the material to be rolled A is subjected to reduction and shaping in a roll gap between the upper caliber roll 20 and the lower caliber roll 21. Further, a peripheral surface of the upper caliber roll 20 (namely, an upper surface of the first caliber K1) is formed with a projection 25 protruding toward the inside of the caliber. Further, a peripheral surface of the lower caliber roll 21 (namely, a bottom surface of the first caliber K1) is formed with a projection 26 protruding toward the inside of the caliber. These projections 25, 26 have tapered shapes, and dimensions such as a protrusion length of the projection 25 and the projection 26 are configured to be equal to each other. A height (protrusion length) of the projections 25, 26 is set to h1 and a tip part angle thereof is set to θ1 a.

In the first caliber K1, the projections 25, 26 are pressed against upper and lower end parts (slab end surfaces) of the material to be rolled A, to thereby form splits 28, 29. Here, a tip part angle (also called a wedge angle) θ1 a of the projections 25, 26 is desirably, for example, 25° or more and 40° or less.

Here, a caliber width of the first caliber K1 is preferably substantially equal to the thickness of the material to be rolled A (namely, a slab thickness). Concretely, when the width of the caliber at the tip parts of the projections 25, 26 formed in the first caliber K1 is set to be the same as the slab thickness, a right-left centering property of the material to be rolled A is suitably ensured. Further, it is preferable that such a configuration of the caliber dimension brings the projections 25, 26 and parts of caliber side surfaces (side walls) into contact with the material to be rolled A at upper and lower end parts (slab end surfaces) of the material to be rolled A during shaping in the first caliber K1 as illustrated in FIG. 2 so as to prevent active reduction at the upper surface and the bottom surface of the first caliber K1 from being performed on the slab upper and lower end parts divided into four elements (parts) by the splits 28, 29. This is because the reduction by the upper surface and the bottom surface of the caliber causes elongation of the material to be rolled A in the longitudinal direction to decrease the generation efficiency of the flanges (later-described flange parts 80). In other words, in the first caliber K1, a reduction amount at the projections 25, 26 (reduction amount at wedge tips) at the time when the projections 25, 26 are pressed against the upper and lower end parts (slab end surfaces) of the material to be rolled A to form the splits 28, 29 is made sufficiently larger than a reduction amount at the slab upper and lower end parts (reduction amount at slab end surfaces), to thereby form the splits 28, 29.

FIG. 3 is a schematic explanatory view of a second caliber K2. The second caliber K2 is engraved on an upper caliber roll 30 and a lower caliber roll 31 which are a pair of horizontal rolls. A peripheral surface of the upper caliber roll 30 (namely, an upper surface of the second caliber K2) is formed with a projection 35 protruding toward the inside of the caliber. Further, a peripheral surface of the lower caliber roll 31 (namely, a bottom surface of the second caliber K2) is formed with a projection 36 protruding toward the inside of the caliber. These projections 35, 36 have tapered shapes, and dimensions such as a protrusion length of the projection 35 and the projection 36 are configured to be equal to each other. A tip part angle of the projections 35, 36 is desirably a wedge angle θ1 b of 25° or more and 40° or less.

Note that the wedge angle θ1 a of the above first caliber K1 is preferably the same angle as the wedge angle θ1 b of the second caliber K2 at a subsequent stage in order to ensure the thickness of the tip parts of the flange corresponding parts, enhance inductive property, and secure stability of rolling.

A height (protrusion length) h2 of the projections 35, 36 is configured to be larger than the height h1 of the projections 25, 26 of the first caliber K1 so as to be h2>h1. Further, the tip part angle of the projections 35, 36 is preferably the same as the tip part angle of the projections 25, 26 in the first caliber K1 in terms of rolling dimension accuracy. In a roll gap between the upper caliber roll 30 and the lower caliber roll 31, the material to be rolled A after passing through the first caliber K1 is further shaped.

Here, the height h2 of the projections 35, 36 formed in the second caliber K2 is larger than the height h1 of the projections 25, 26 formed in the first caliber K1, and an intrusion length into the upper and lower end parts (slab end surfaces) of the material to be rolled A is also similarly larger in the second caliber K2. An intrusion depth into the material to be rolled A of the projections 35, 36 in the second caliber K2 is the same as the height h2 of the projections 35, 36. In other words, an intrusion depth h1′ into the material to be rolled A of the projections 25, 26 in the first caliber K1 and the intrusion depth h2 into the material to be rolled A of the projections 35, 36 in the second caliber K2 satisfy the relation of h1′<h2.

Further, angles θf formed between caliber upper surfaces 30 a, 30 b and caliber bottom surfaces 31 a, 31 b facing the upper and lower end parts (slab end surfaces) of the material to be rolled A, and, inclined surfaces of the projections 35, 36, are configured to be about 90° (almost right angle) at all of four locations illustrated in FIG. 3.

Since the intrusion length of the projections at the time when pressed against the upper and lower end parts (slab end surfaces) of the material to be rolled A is large as illustrated in FIG. 3, shaping is performed to make the splits 28, 29 formed in the first caliber K1 deeper in the second caliber K2, to thereby form the splits 38, 39. Note that based on the dimensions of the splits 38, 39 formed here, a flange half-width at the end of a flange shaping step at the rough rolling step is decided.

Besides, the shaping in the second caliber K2 illustrated in FIG. 3 is performed by multi-passes, and in the multi-pass shaping, the active reduction of the material to be rolled A is not performed at the upper and lower end parts (slab end surfaces) of the material to be rolled A. This is because the reduction causes the elongation of the material to be rolled A in the longitudinal direction to decrease the generation efficiency of the flange corresponding parts (corresponding to a later-described flange parts 80).

FIG. 4 is a schematic explanatory view of a third caliber K3. The third caliber K3 is engraved on an upper caliber roll 40 and a lower caliber roll 41 which are a pair of horizontal rolls. A peripheral surface of the upper caliber roll 40 (namely, an upper surface of the third caliber K3) is formed with a projection 45 protruding toward the inside of the caliber. Further, a peripheral surface of the lower caliber roll 41 (namely, a bottom surface of the third caliber K3) is formed with a projection 46 protruding toward the inside of the caliber. These projections 45, 46 have tapered shapes, and dimensions such as a protrusion length of the projection 45 and the projection 46 are configured to be equal to each other.

A tip part angle θ2 of the projections 45, 46 is configured to be larger than the aforementioned angle θ1 b, and an intrusion depth h3 into the material to be rolled A of the projections 45, 46 is smaller than the intrusion depth h2 of the above projections 35, 36 (namely, h3<h2). The angle θ2 is preferably, for example, 70° or more and 110° or less.

Further, angles θf formed between caliber upper surfaces 40 a, 40 b and caliber bottom surfaces 41 a, 41 b facing the upper and lower end parts (slab end surfaces) of the material to be rolled A, and, inclined surfaces of the projections 45, 46, are configured to be about 90° (almost right angle) at all of four locations illustrated in FIG. 4.

As illustrated in FIG. 4, in the third caliber K3, the splits 38, 39 formed in the second caliber K2 at the upper and lower end parts (slab end surfaces) of the material to be rolled A after passing through the second caliber K2 become splits 48, 49 by the projections 45, 46 being pressed against thereon. Specifically, in a final pass in shaping in the third caliber K3, a deepest part angle (hereinafter, also called a split angle) of the splits 48, 49 becomes θ2. In other words, shaping is performed so that divided parts (the parts corresponding to the later-described flange parts 80) shaped along with the formation of the splits 38, 39 in the second caliber K2 are bent outward.

Besides, the shaping in the third caliber K3 illustrated in FIG. 4 is performed by at least one or more passes, and in the pass shaping, the active reduction of the material to be rolled A is not performed in these passes. This is because the reduction causes the elongation of the material to be rolled A in the longitudinal direction to decrease the generation efficiency of the flange corresponding parts (corresponding to the later-described flange parts 80).

FIG. 5 is a schematic explanatory view of a fourth caliber K4. The fourth caliber K4 is engraved on an upper caliber roll 50 and a lower caliber roll 51 which are a pair of horizontal rolls. A peripheral surface of the upper caliber roll 50 (namely, an upper surface of the fourth caliber K4) is formed with a projection 55 protruding toward the inside of the caliber. Further, a peripheral surface of the lower caliber roll 51 (namely, a bottom surface of the fourth caliber K4) is formed with a projection 56 protruding toward the inside of the caliber. These projections 55, 56 have tapered shapes, and dimensions such as a protrusion length of the projection 55 and the projection 56 are configured to be equal to each other.

A tip part angle θ3 of the projections 55, 56 is configured to be larger than the aforementioned angle θ2, and an intrusion depth h4 into the material to be rolled A of the projections 55, 56 is smaller than the intrusion depth h3 of the projections 45, 46 (namely, h4<h3). The angle θ3 is preferably, for example, 130° or more and 170° or less.

Further, angles θf formed between caliber upper surfaces 50 a, 50 b and caliber bottom surfaces 51 a, 51 b facing the upper and lower end parts (slab end surfaces) of the material to be rolled A, and, inclined surfaces of the projections 55, 56, are configured to be about 90° (almost right angle) at all of four locations illustrated in FIG. 5 similarly to the above third caliber K3.

In the fourth caliber K4, the splits 48, 49 formed in the third caliber K3 at the upper and lower end parts (slab end surfaces) of the material to be rolled A after passing through the third caliber K3 are pressed to spread by the projections 55, 56 being pressed against thereon, to thereby become splits 58, 59. Specifically, in a final pass in shaping in the fourth caliber K4, a deepest part angle (hereinafter, also called a split angle) of the splits 58, 59 becomes θ3. In other words, shaping is performed so that divided parts (the parts corresponding to the later-described flange parts 80) shaped along with the formation of the splits 48, 49 in the third caliber K3 are further bent outward. The parts of the upper and lower end parts of the material to be rolled A shaped in this manner are parts corresponding to flanges of a later-described H-shaped steel product and called the flange parts 80 herein.

Besides, the shaping in the fourth caliber K4 illustrated in FIG. 5 is performed by at least one or more passes, and the active reduction of the material to be rolled A is not performed in these passes. This is because the reduction causes the elongation of the material to be rolled A in the longitudinal direction to decrease the generation efficiency of the flange parts 80.

The rolling and shaping using the above first caliber K1 to fourth caliber K4 is also called an edging rolling step of shaping the material to be rolled A into a predetermined almost dog-bone shape, and is implemented in a state where the raw material slab having a rectangular cross section is erected.

FIG. 6 is a schematic explanatory view of a fifth caliber K5. The fifth caliber K5 is composed of an upper caliber roll 85 and a lower caliber roll 86 which are a pair of horizontal rolls. As illustrated in FIG. 6, in the fifth caliber K5, the material to be rolled A shaped until the fourth caliber K4 is rotated by 90° or 270°, whereby the flange parts 80 located at the upper and lower ends of the material to be rolled A until the fourth caliber K4 are located on a rolling pitch line. Then, in the fifth caliber K5, reduction of the web part 82 being a connecting part connecting the flange parts 80 at two positions is performed.

Here, upper and lower caliber rolls 85, 86 of the fifth caliber K5 have shapes formed with recessed parts 85 a, 86 a of a predetermined length W1 at their roll barrel length middle parts. With such a caliber configuration illustrated in FIG. 6, the reduction of the web part 82 is partially performed from a first pass of the caliber to a pass thereof in which a raised part 82 b is filled, so that in the web part 82 after the reduction, reduced portions 82 a at both ends in the web height direction and the raised part 82 b at the middle part thereof are formed. In this manner, the rolling and shaping of forming the raised part 82 b in the web part 82 is performed in a material to be rolled in a so-called dog-bone shape.

Note that since the rolling and shaping of partially reducing the web part 82 to form the raised part 82 b is implemented in the fifth caliber K5, this caliber is also called a “web partial rolling caliber”. Further, the same length as the width length of the raised part 82 b after the formation is the same length (a later-described escaping amount W1) as the width length W1 of the recessed parts 85 a, 86 a. Herein, as illustrated in the enlarged view in FIG. 6, the width length W1 of the recessed parts 85 a, 86 a in this description is defined as a width length at a depth of ½ of a depth hm of the recessed parts 85 a, 86 a, and a later-described escaping amount W1 also conforms to a similar definition.

FIG. 7 is a schematic explanatory view of a sixth caliber K6. The sixth caliber K6 is composed of an upper caliber roll 95 and a lower caliber roll 96 which are a pair of horizontal rolls. In the sixth caliber K6, the rolling and shaping of eliminating the raised part 82 b formed in the web part 82 and widening the inner size of the web part 82 is performed on the material to be rolled A rolled and shaped in the fifth caliber K5.

In the sixth caliber K6, the rolling of bringing the upper and lower caliber rolls 95, 96 into contact with the raised part 82 b formed in the web part 82 to reduce (eliminate) the raised part 82 b is performed.

The rolling and shaping by the sixth caliber K6 makes it possible to promote spread in the web height direction and the metal flow to the flange parts 80 accompanying the reduction of the raised part 82 b, to thereby implement the rolling and shaping without causing decrease in area of the flange as much as possible.

The sixth caliber K6 eliminates the raised part 82 b formed in the web part 82, and is therefore also called a “raised part eliminating caliber”.

Further, the material to be rolled A through the first caliber K1 to the sixth caliber K6 described above may be further subjected to the widening rolling of the web part 82 as needed. In this case, at a stage subsequent to the rolling and shaping in the sixth caliber K6, it is only necessary to perform the widening rolling using one or a plurality of widening calibers. Note that since the caliber for widening rolling in that case is a conventionally known caliber, the explanation of the caliber for the widening rolling is omitted in this description.

The rolling and shaping using the above fifth caliber K5 and sixth caliber K6 (and the widening caliber as needed) is implemented in an almost H-shaped attitude in which the material to be rolled A shaped at the edging rolling step is rotated by 90° or 270°, and is therefore also called a flat rolling step.

The H-shaped raw blank 13 illustrated in FIG. 1 is shaped using the first caliber K1 to the sixth caliber K6 as described above and the caliber for widening rolling as needed. The H-shaped raw blank 13 shaped as described above is subjected to application of reverse rolling in a plurality of passes using the rolling mill train composed of two rolling mills of the intermediate universal rolling mill 5 and the edger rolling mill 9 being known rolling mills, whereby an intermediate material 14 is shaped. The intermediate material 14 is then subjected to finish rolling into a product shape in the finishing universal rolling mill 8, whereby an H-shaped steel product 16 is produced (refer to FIG. 1).

In the method for producing H-shaped steel according to the present embodiment, the first caliber K1 to the fourth caliber K4 are used to create splits in the upper and lower end parts (slab end surfaces) of the material to be rolled A and perform processing of bending to right and left the respective portions separated to right and left by the splits to perform the shaping of forming the flange parts 80 as explained above, thereby enabling shaping of the H-shaped raw blank 13 without performing substantial vertical reduction of the upper and lower end surfaces of the material to be rolled A (slab). In short, it becomes possible to shape the H-shaped raw blank 13 having the flange width made wider as compared with the rough rolling method of reducing at all times the slab end surfaces conventionally performed, resulting in production of a final product (H-shaped steel) having a large flange width.

Besides, the flat shaping and rolling implemented after the edging rolling is implemented by the caliber configuration including the fifth caliber K5 of forming the raised part 82 b and the sixth caliber K6 of eliminating the raised part 82 b and widening the inner size of the web part 82 in the present embodiment. This makes it possible to roll and shape the H-shaped raw blank 13 having a larger flange width as compared with a conventional one, resulting in enabling the production of the H-shaped steel product having a larger flange width as compared with conventional ones.

Here, during the rolling and shaping using the above fifth caliber K5 and sixth caliber K6, it is found that the raised part 82 b formed in the web part 82 is eliminated but the inner size of the web part 82 is expanded with elimination of the raised part 82 b, which sometimes causes a gap between inner surfaces of the flange parts 80 and the rolls (the upper caliber roll 95 and the lower caliber roll 96 in the present embodiment) during the rolling and shaping in the sixth caliber K6. The occurrence of the gap between the inner surfaces of the flange parts 80 and the rolls is likely to cause a deviation of right-left flange thickness amounts, or the like, and to impair rolling stability such as a material passage property.

In consideration of such circumstances, the present inventors conducted further studies regarding suitable conditions not to impair the rolling stability when the raised part 82 b is eliminated in the sixth caliber K6, and obtained the finding as explained below. Hereinafter, this finding is explained while referring to the drawings or the like.

A rolling state of impairing the rolling stability in the flat shaping and rolling represented by the rolling and shaping in the sixth caliber K6 means that unbalance of flange thickness amounts occurs at a time of the elimination of the raised part 82 b. The avoidance of the above is considered to require a state where the inner surfaces of the flange parts 80 and the rolls are brought into contact with each other in at least one pass in the rolling and shaping in the sixth caliber K6. By bringing the inner surfaces of the flange parts 80 and the rolls into contact with each other in the rolling and shaping of eliminating the raised part, right-left deformations of the flange parts 80 are equalized to maintain the rolling stability. In particular, during the rolling and shaping in a plurality of passes, the inner surfaces of the flange parts 80 and the rolls are desirably brought into contact with each other in the first pass thereof.

In order to realize such a condition that the inner surfaces of the flange parts 80 and the rolls are in the state of being brought into contact with each other in at least one pass in the rolling and shaping in the sixth caliber K6, it becomes necessary to perform caliber design of the sixth caliber K6 suitably or to make a pass schedule in the sixth caliber K6 suitable.

(Suitable Caliber Design and Pass Schedule)

FIG. 8 are schematic explanatory views in a case where the rolling and shaping is performed in a state where the inner surface of the flange parts 80 and the roll are brought into contact with each other in the rolling and shaping in the sixth caliber K6. Note that for the purpose of simplification of the explanation, FIG. 8 illustrate only the upper half of the material to be rolled A. As illustrated in FIGS. 8(a), (b), in the reduction of the raised part 82 b using the upper caliber roll 95, the rolling and shaping is preferably performed in the state where the inner surface 80 a of the flange parts 80 is brought into contact with the upper caliber roll 95. When the rolling and shaping in the sixth caliber K6 is performed in the plurality of passes, the state where an inner surface 80 a of the flange parts 80 is brought into contact with the upper caliber roll 95 is adoptable as states in all the passes, and as a state in a part of the passes (for example, the first pass). That is, it is only necessary that the inner surface 80 a of the flange parts 80 is in the state of being brought into contact with the upper caliber roll 95 in the rolling and shaping in at least one or more passes.

Here, as one of the conditions for performing the rolling and shaping in the state where the inner surface 80 a of the flange parts 80 is brought into contact with the upper caliber roll 95, it is cited that a shape of the sixth caliber K6 is formed into a predetermined shape. As a concrete configuration of the sixth caliber K6, a configuration in a state where the roll and the inner surface 80 a of the flange parts 80 extend across each other is desirable during the rolling and shaping in the first pass. FIG. 9 is a schematic explanatory view about a desirable configuration of the sixth caliber K6, and solid lines indicate roll shapes and a mesh indicates the material to be rolled A. The configuration of the sixth caliber K6 is set to be a configuration that all the inner surfaces 80 a of the flange parts 80 (broken line parts in FIG. 9) are brought into contact with the rolls, whereby forming of at least tip parts of the flange parts 80 is performed, which maintains the rolling stability.

As illustrated in FIG. 9, between distances between application positions of rolling force from the roll on the flange part 80 in the material to be rolled A (refer to arrows in FIG. 9) and a center position of the material to be rolled A, namely, moment arms through which the material to be rolled A is intended to rotate, the one on the tip side of the flange part 80 is longer (L1>L2 in the view), and the rolling is considered to be likely to be stable even though asymmetric deformation occurs in the material to be rolled A. Note that adjustment of such a condition related to the configuration of the sixth caliber K6 can be controlled by, for example, a value of the inner size of the caliber, an inclination angle of a flange facing portion of the caliber, or the like.

The following Table 1 indicates specifications of the roll calibers indicating conventional caliber design, and one example of conditions when a web inner size is widened by flat rolling and shaping, and widening rolling without forming a raised part in the flat rolling and shaping.

Further, the following Table 2 indicates specifications of the roll calibers indicating the caliber design according to the present invention, and conditions including the caliber (K6 in Table) of performing the elimination of the raised part and the widening (first-stage widening) simultaneously after forming the raised part. Note that the respective rolls K1 to K6 described in Table 2 correspond to the first caliber K1 to the sixth caliber K6 according to the present embodiment, and the other K7 to K9 are general widening calibers. In addition, K2-1 and K2-2 indicate split calibers having different projection heights, and both of them are the calibers each having a function corresponding to the second caliber K2 according to the present embodiment.

TABLE 1 MILL SM BD CALIBER K1 K2-1 K2-2 K3 K4 K5 FUNCTION GROOVING SPLIT SPLIT BENDING BENDING FLAT ANGLE/INNER 30° 30° 30° 90° 140° 720 SIZE EDGING (TIP)/ 1740 1440 1140 1120 1080 1080 OUTER SIZE WEDGE HEIGHT 130 242 354 283 — — MILL BD R1 CALIBER K6 K7 K8 K9 R2 FUNCTION WIDENING WIDENING WIDENING WIDENING Uni ANGLE/INNER 860 940 1020 1100 1120 SIZE EDGING (TIP)/ 1220 1300 1380 1460 1480 OUTER SIZE WEDGE HEIGHT — — — — — (UNIT OF VALUE NOT PARTICULARLY REPRESENTED IN TABLE: mm)

TABLE 2 MILL SM BD CALIBER K1 K6 FUNCTION K5 RAISED PART RAISED ELIMINATION K2-1 K2-2 K3 K4 PART (FIRST-STAGE GROOVING SPLIT SPLIT BENDING BENDING FORMATION WIDENING) ANGLE/INNER 30° 30° 30° 90° 140° 720 860 SIZE EDGING (TIP 1740 1450 1160 1140 1200 1220 1320 DISTANCE)/ OUTER SIZE WEDGE HEIGHT 130 234 338 265 — — — MILL BD R1 CALIBER K7 K8 K9 FUNCTION WIDENING WIDENING WIDENING (SECOND-STAGE (THIRD-STAGE (FOURTH-STAGE R2 WIDENING) WIDENING) WIDENING) Uni ANGLE/INNER 940 1020 1100 1120 SIZE EDGING (TIP 1340 1380 1460 1480 DISTANCE)/ OUTER SIZE WEDGE HEIGHT — — — — (UNIT OF VALUE NOT PARTICULARLY REPRESENTED IN TABLE: mm)

As can be seen from a comparison of Table 1 and Table 2, between the case of implementing the elimination of the raised part and the widening rolling simultaneously in the sixth caliber K6 in the technique according to the present embodiment and the case of the conventional technique, the number of calibers used subsequently to the flat rolling and shaping is the same, and a caliber arrangement or the like is not changed either. That is, by making the caliber design of the sixth caliber K6 suitable, and having the configuration to perform the elimination of the raised part 82 b and the widening of the web inner size simultaneously in the sixth caliber K6, it becomes possible to roll and shape the H-shaped raw blank 13 having a large flange width with a roll barrel length and the like being under previous conditions as they are, resulting in enabling the production of the H-shaped steel product having a larger flange width as compared with conventional ones.

Further, by specifications of the roll calibers such that the inner surfaces of the flange parts 80 and the rolls are brought into contact with each other at the time of the elimination of the raised part 82 b, the right-left deformations of the flange parts 80 are equalized to maintain the rolling stability.

In addition, as one of the conditions for performing the rolling and shaping in the state where the inner surface 80 a of the flange parts 80 is brought into contact with the upper caliber roll 95, it is cited that the pass schedule of the rolling and shaping in the sixth caliber K6 is suitably designed. Concretely, adjusting a reduction amount in the caliber of performing the elimination of the raised part (the sixth caliber K6 here) suitably, and suppressing the reduction amount of the raised part 82 b cause the expansion of the inner size of the web part 82 with the elimination of the raised part 82 b to be suppressed, which realizes the maintaining of the rolling stability.

First, as described above while referring to FIG. 9, as a suitable caliber shape, in the rolling and shaping in the first pass, the caliber is designed so that the inner surfaces 80 a of the flange parts 80 and inner surfaces of the rolls are brought into contact with each other when a roll gap including variations of the raised part 82 b in the longitudinal direction is evaluated to set the first pass with respect to such a roll gap as to indicate its minimum value (namely, a roll gap obtained by matching a roll gap of the web part to a height of the raised part 82 b). The first pass is set with respect to the roll gap obtained by actually matching the roll gap of the web part to the height of the raised part 82 b using such a caliber, thereby enabling secure forming of the inner surfaces 80 a of the flange parts 80, which realizes the maintaining of the rolling stability.

Moreover, as a suitable pass schedule, in the caliber of performing the rolling and shaping of eliminating the raised part, a contact state of the flange inner surface can also be controlled by setting the pass schedule to partially perform the elimination of the raised part. For example, when the rolling and shaping of eliminating the raised part is performed in a plurality of passes, taking a reduction amount per one pass too much causes the spread of the web inner size due to the elimination (reduction) of the raised part 82 b, which makes it difficult that the inner surfaces 80 a of the flange parts 80 are brought into contact with the rolls, to be likely to impair the rolling stability. Thus, in the rolling and shaping in the first pass, limitation is imposed on the reduction amount of the raised part 82 b, thereby enabling the secure forming of the inner surfaces 80 a of the flange parts 80, which realizes the maintaining of the rolling stability.

Note that, when the elimination of the raised part is partially performed, the elimination of the remaining raised part is preferably performed in an optional caliber at a subsequent stage. For example, the reduction and elimination of the remaining raised part may be performed by universal rolling in the intermediate universal rolling mill 5 (refer to FIG. 1) in which an intermediate rolling step is performed.

The below-indicated Tables 3, 4 are examples of pass schedules when the formation and the elimination of the raised part 82 b are performed by using the above explained fifth caliber K5 and sixth caliber K6, and Table 3 indicates a conventional pass schedule and Table 4 indicates a pass schedule according to the present invention. Note that the respective calibers K5 and K6 described in Tables 3, 4 correspond to the fifth caliber K5 and the sixth caliber K6 according to the present embodiment.

TABLE 3 WEB END PART WEB RAISED PART PASS CALIBER THICKNESS THICKNESS 1 K5 270 300 2 K5 250 300 3 K5 220 300 4 K5 200 300 5 K5 185 285 6 K5 170 270 7 K5 160 260 8 K5 150 250 9 K5 140 240 10 K5 130 230 11 K5 120 220 12 K5 110 210 13 K5 100 200 14 K6 100 100 SLAB WIDTH: 2000 mm (UNIT: mm)

TABLE 4 WEB END PART WEB RAISED PART PASS CALIBER THICKNESS THICKNESS 1 K5 270 300 2 K5 250 300 3 K5 220 300 4 K5 200 300 5 K5 185 285 6 K5 170 270 7 K5 160 260 8 K5 150 250 9 K5 140 240 10 K5 130 230 11 K5 120 220 12 K5 110 210 13 K5 100 200 14 K6 100 150 SLAB WIDTH: 2000 mm (UNIT: mm)

As can be seen from a comparison of Table 3 and Table 4, in the conventional pass schedule, the raised part 82 b is eliminated completely in a first pass in the sixth caliber K6 (fourteenth pass), resulting in that a web end part thickness and a web projection (raised part) thickness are equal to each other (100.0 mm), while in the pass schedule according to the present invention, a state where the raised part 82 b remains without complete elimination of the raised part 82 b (150.0 mm) is seen. Adopting such a pass schedule makes it possible to suppress the inner size expansion of the web part 82 with the elimination of the raised part 82 b, which realizes the maintaining of the rolling stability.

FIG. 10 are schematic views based on simulations indicating shapes of the materials to be rolled after eliminating the respective raised parts in the above pass schedules in Table 3 and Table 4, and (a) is a schematic view in the conventional pass schedule and (b) is a schematic view in the pass schedule according to the present invention.

As illustrated in FIG. 10(a), in the rolling and shaping of eliminating the raised part, when the raised part is eliminated completely, a gap occurs between the caliber roll and the flange inner surface of the material to be rolled together with the widening of the web inner size with the elimination of the raised part (refer to a broken line part in the view). On the other hand, as illustrated in FIG. 10(b), when the elimination of the raised part is partly left behind, the rolling and shaping can be completed in a state where the caliber roll and the flange inner surface of the material to be rolled are brought into contact with each other.

This causes the right-left deformations of the flange parts 80 to be equalized, which maintains the rolling stability.

(Ratio of Escaping Amount (Raised Part Forming Width) in Web Inner Size)

As described above, in the fifth caliber K5 (refer to FIG. 6) according to the present embodiment, the raised part 82 b is formed at the middle of the web part 82 of the material to be rolled A, and the formed raised part 82 b is eliminated in the sixth caliber K6 at a subsequent stage. Then, the widening rolling of the web inner size is performed as needed after the elimination of the raised part, to thereby shape the H-shaped raw blank, and in order to produce a large-size H-shaped steel product having a larger flange width as compared with the conventional one, the flange width of the H-shaped raw blank is also desired to be made as large as possible.

The present inventors found out that, by changing the width length W1 of the raised part 82 b formed in the fifth caliber K5 (namely, the escaping amount of the web inner size in the rolling and shaping in the fifth caliber K5), there is generated a difference in the flange width of the finally obtained H-shaped raw blank. This is attributed to the fact that the flange thickness amount is more easily ensured with an increase in width length of the raised part 82 b, but, on the other hand, the flange width decreases by the drawing action in the longitudinal direction of the material to be rolled A at the time of the subsequent elimination of the raised part.

Accordingly, in order to define a suitable range of the escaping amount of the web inner size (which is simply described also as “escaping amount W1”, hereinafter) in the rolling and shaping in the fifth caliber K5, the present inventors focused attention on the relation between the escaping percentage and the increase/decrease of the flange width after the shaping of the H-shaped raw blank, and derived the preferable numerical value range of the escaping percentage. Note that the escaping percentage is a value defined by the following formula (1).

Escaping percentage [%]=(escaping amount W1/web inner size W2)×100   (1)

FIG. 11 is a graph indicating the relation between the escaping percentage and the flange width increase/decrease rate after the shaping of the H-shaped raw blank. Note that the flange width increase/decrease rate in FIG. 11 is a value indicating the flange width in the case where the escaping percentage is each value (12% to 56%) using the flange width in the case of the escaping percentage of 0% as a reference (1.000).

As illustrated in FIG. 11, the flange width of the H-shaped raw blank tends to increase with an increase in the escaping percentage, and the flange width increase/decrease indicates an almost fixed value (refer to a broken line part in the graph) in a region where the escaping percentage is about 25% or more.

In consideration that the rolling and shaping of increasing also the flange width of the H-shaped raw blank is desired in the case of producing a large-size H-shaped steel product having a larger flange width as compared with the conventional one, it can be understood from the result indicated in FIG. 11 that the numerical value range of the escaping percentage is desirably set to 25% to 50%.

(Material Passage Property During Elimination of Raised Part)

As described above, it was found out, from the result in FIG. 11, that the numerical value range of the escaping percentage when forming the raised part 82 b is desirably set to 25% to 50%, and meanwhile, there is a need to further conduct a study regarding a value of a thickness of the reduced portions 82 a of the web when forming the raised part 82 b at the escaping percentage in such a numerical value range. This is estimated to be the result that, when, after forming the raised part 82 b, the rolling and shaping for eliminating the raised part 82 b is performed in the sixth caliber K6, the reduced portions 82 a are excessively thin, and there is a case where metal movement of the raised part 82 b is not realized in a cross section, which causes the metal movement in the longitudinal direction of the material to be rolled A.

Accordingly, the present inventors conducted evaluation regarding shaping property (rolling stability) under conditions where a web reduction amount was changed during rolling and shaping in the fifth caliber K5 at a time of performing rolling and shaping using the first caliber K1 to the sixth caliber K6 according to the present embodiment in a case of producing H-shaped steel with a product flange width of 400 mm or more by using a rectangular cross-section slab of 2000×300 mm as a raw material. As concrete conditions, cases where thicknesses after reduction of the reduced portions 82 a were set to 200 mm, 160 mm, 140 mm, 120 mm, and 100 mm, were set to levels 1 to 5, respectively. Note that as a comparative level, a case where the web thickness reduction is performed without forming the raised part 82 b, was set to a level 6.

Table 5 to be shown below indicates pass schedules of the aforementioned level 1 to level 6, and respective calibers G1, G2-2, G3-1, G3-2, G4-1, and G4-2 in Table correspond to the first caliber K1 to the sixth caliber K6 described in the present embodiment. Further, the evaluation of the shaping property is described in the lowest column in Table 5, in which a case where the poor material passage and the defective shape occurred is evaluated as “bad”, and a case where the poor material passage and the defective shape did not occur is evaluated as “good”.

TABLE 5 LEVEL 1 LEVEL 2 LEVEL 3 LEVEL 4 LEVEL 5 LEVEL 6 2000 WIDTH 2000 WIDTH 2000 WIDTH 2000 WIDTH 2000 WIDTH 2000 WIDTH 300 300 300 300 300 300 WEB THICKNESS THICKNESS THICKNESS THICKNESS THICKNESS THICKNESS THICKNESS  1 G1 G1 G1 G1 G1 G1 ~  2 G1 G1 G1 G1 G1 G1 ~  3 G1 G1 G1 G1 G1 G1 ~  4 G2-2 G2-2 G2-2 G2-2 G2-2 G2-2 ~  5 G2-2 G2-2 G2-2 G2-2 G2-2 G2-2 ~  6 G2-2 G2-2 G2-2 G2-2 G2-2 G2-2 ~  7 G2-2 G2-2 G2-2 G2-2 G2-2 G2-2 ~  8 G2-2 G2-2 G2-2 G2-2 G2-2 G2-2 ~  9 G2-2 G2-2 G2-2 G2-2 G2-2 G2-2 ~ 10 G3-1 G3-1 G3-1 G3-1 G3-1 G3-1 ~ 11 G3 1 G3 1 G3 1 G3 1 G3 1 G3 1 ~ 12 G3-2 G3-2 G3-2 G3-2 G3-2 G3-2 ~ 13 G3-2 G3-2 G3-2 G3-2 G3-2 G3-2 ~ 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 G4-1 G4-1 G4-1 G4-1 G4-1 G4-1 G4-1 G4-1 G4-1 G4-1 G4-1 G4-1 G4-1 G4-1 G4-1 G4-1 G4-1 G4-1 G4-1 G4-1 G4-1 G4-1 G4-1 G4-1 G4-1 G4-1 G4-1 G4-1 G4-1 G4-1 G4-1 G4-1 G4-1 G4-1 G4-1 G4-1 G4-1 G4-1 G4-1 G4-1

280 260 240 200 180 160 150 140 130 120 110 100 28 G4-2 G4-2 G4-2 G4-2 G4-2 G4-2 280 27 G4-2 G4-2 G4-2 G4-2 G4-2 G4-2 260 28 G4-2 G4-2 G4-2 G4-2 G4-2 G4-2 240 29 G4-2 G4-2 G4-2 G4-2 G4-2 G4-2 200 30 G4-2 G4-2 G4-2 G4-2 G4-2 180 31 G4-2 G4-2 G4-2 G4-2 G4-2 160 32 G4-2 G4-2 G4-2 G4-2 150 33 G4-2 G4-2 G4-2 G4-2 140 34 G4-2 G4-2 G4-2 130 35 G4-2 G4-2 G4-2 120 36 G4-2 G4-2 110 37 G4-2 G4-2 100 ROLLING GOOD GOOD GOOD BAD BAD BAD RESULT

As shown in Table 5, when the thicknesses after reduction of the reduced portions 82 a were set to 200 mm, 160 mm, and 140 mm (levels 1 to 3), the poor material passage and the defective shape do not occur when eliminating the raised part 82 b. On the other hand, when the thicknesses after reduction of the reduced portions 82 a were set to 120 mm, and 100 mm (levels 4 and 5), the poor material passage and the defective shape occur when eliminating the raised part 82 b. Further, also when the web thickness reduction to 100 mm was performed without forming the raised part 82 b (level 6), similar poor material passage and defective shape occur.

Here, evaluation criteria of the shaping property (rolling stability) will be described. The evaluation of the shaping property is performed based on warpage which occurs in the longitudinal direction of the material to be rolled A when performing the rolling and shaping of eliminating the raised part 82 b.

FIG. 12 is an explanatory diagram regarding warpage of the material to be rolled A, and is a schematic side view when warpage occurred in an end part in the longitudinal direction of the material to be rolled A. As illustrated in FIG. 12, a difference between an end part and a steady part when the warpage occurred in the end part in the longitudinal direction of the material to be rolled A, is defined as a “warpage amount”. Further, a ratio of the generated warpage amount to the length in the longitudinal direction of the material to be rolled A in which the warpage occurred, is set to “warpage (%)” defined by the following formula (2).

Warpage [%]=warpage amount/length of material to be rolled in which warpage occurred  (2)

The relation between the “warpage (%)” defined by the aforementioned formula (2) and the thickness after reduction of the reduced portions 82 a was verified. FIG. 13 is a graph illustrating the relation between warpage and a web thickness (thickness after reduction of the reduced portions 82 a). Note that the graph illustrated in FIG. 13 indicates data under a condition in which the escaping percentage was set to about 33%.

As illustrated in FIG. 13, there is a tendency that the smaller the thickness after reduction of the reduced portions 82 a, the larger the warpage. In particular, it has been found out that when the thickness after reduction of the reduced portions 82 a is 140 mm or less, the warpage is small to be about 3% or less, and when the thickness after reduction of the reduced portions 82 a exceeds 140 mm, the warpage is increased to be about 10% or more, and the shape deteriorates significantly.

In terms of operation, when the warpage occurred in the material to be rolled A becomes 10% or more, deterioration of dimension and shape in the next pass and thereafter becomes significant, and it becomes difficult to continue the rolling. Namely, from the result indicated in FIG. 13, it can be understood that good shaping property can be secured by performing the rolling and shaping in the fifth caliber K5 to make the web thickness (thickness after reduction of the reduced portions 82 a) to be 140 mm or more. This matches the fact that the shaping property is good under the conditions of the levels 1 to 3 shown in Table 1.

Here, the reason why the threshold regarding the warpage is set to 10%, is because when the maximum warpage amount of about several hundreds of millimeters occurs at a percentage of 10% with respect to several meters of the end part of the material to be rolled, a difference in upper and lower thickness amounts is generated, which can be easily confirmed by a person skilled in the art, and a value at which it is apparent that the rolling becomes difficult to be continued in terms of operation is 10%.

Note that when the warpage is several % (less than 10%) under the same condition, warpage to a degree of several tens of millimeters is normally observed during operation, but, the degree has no problem in terms of operation, which can be easily estimated by the person skilled in the art.

As can be seen from FIG. 13, in the rolling and shaping in the sixth caliber K6, since a minimum thickness after reduction such that the warpage does not occur in the reduced portions 82 a is 140 mm, a drawing λ of the raised part 82 b at this time is 2.14 (=300/140).

Note that when the web thickness (thickness after reduction of the reduced portions 82 a) is made equal to or more than a predetermined value (for example, 140 mm) in the fifth caliber K5, thinning reduction of the web may be performed to make the web thickness thinner in the sixth caliber K6 at a subsequent stage.

Further, FIG. 14 is a graph illustrating the relation between the thickness after reduction (finished web thickness after reduction) of the reduced portions 82 a in the fifth caliber K5 and a height of the raised part 82 b before reducing. When “escaping percentage” described above while referring to FIG. 11 is set under a suitable condition (for example, 25% to 50%), the drawing action in the longitudinal direction of the raised part 82 b is small, and unless limitation is imposed on the height of the raised part by the caliber, the height of the raised part remains a slab thickness of the raw material.

For example, when the caliber is provided with the slab thickness of 300 mm and the height of the raised part 82 b at a sufficient height, the height of the raised part remains 300 mm. From the above state, when the raised part 82 b was eliminated in the raised part eliminating caliber (the sixth caliber K6 in FIG. 7), a case where the finished web thickness after reduction in the fifth caliber K5 was 140 mm had no problem in the material passage property, but the poor material passage occurred in a case where it is 130 mm. The thickness of the raised part 82 b is 300 mm in each of the above cases, and the drawing of the raised part 82 b is 2.14 owing to reduction from 300 mm to 140 mm in the case of 140 mm, and it is 2.31 owing to reduction from 300 mm to 130 mm in the case of 130 mm. When plotting is performed regarding various cases similarly, a limiting drawing indicating a threshold in the poor material passage is about 2.1 in each of the cases as illustrated in FIG. 14.

That is, as illustrated in FIG. 14, when the reduction ratio (drawing) at the time of the elimination of the raised part in the sixth caliber K6 exceeds 2.1, it becomes experimentally clear that the poor material passage (× in FIG. 14) occurs. It is found that performing the caliber design under the conditions such that the reduction ratio at the time of the elimination of the raised part in the sixth caliber K6 is 2.1 or less makes it possible to implement the rolling and shaping using the fifth caliber K5 and the sixth caliber K6 without the occurrence of the poor material passage. Note that after performing the rolling of eliminating the raised part in the sixth caliber K6, when the thickness reduction of the web is required further, at a subsequent stage of the rolling and shaping in the sixth caliber K6, it is only necessary to perform the widening rolling using one or a plurality of widening calibers.

One example of the embodiment of the present invention has been explained above, but, the present invention is not limited to the illustrated embodiment. It should be understood that various changes or modifications are readily apparent to those skilled in the art within the scope of the spirit as set forth in claims, and those should also be covered by the technical scope of the present invention.

For example, the technique of performing the shaping of the material to be rolled A using four calibers of the first caliber K1 to the fourth caliber K4, and thereafter performing the rolling and shaping of the H-shaped raw blank using the fifth caliber K5, the sixth caliber K6 (and the widening rolling calibers as needed) is explained in the above embodiment, but, the number of calibers for performing the rough rolling step is not limited to this, and the rolling and shaping step illustrated in the first caliber K1 to the fourth caliber K4 may be implemented using more calibers. That is, the caliber configuration indicated in the above embodiment is one example, and the number of calibers engraved on the sizing mill 3 and the rough rolling mill 4 can be changed arbitrarily and is changed appropriately to the extent that the rough rolling step can be suitably implemented.

Further, in the above embodiment, the shaping method of creating splits in the upper and lower end parts (slab end surfaces) of the material to be rolled A and performing processing of bending to right and left the respective portions separated to right and left by the splits to form the flange parts 80 in the first caliber K1 to the fourth caliber K4 is explained. However, the rolling and shaping technique in the sixth caliber K6 according to the present invention is applicable not only to the material to be rolled A shaped by such a technique but also, for example, to a conventional H-shaped raw blank (so-called dog-bone material) represented by Patent Document 1.

INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY

The present invention is applicable to a production method for producing H-shaped steel using, for example, a slab having a rectangular cross section or the like as a raw material.

EXPLANATION OF CODES

-   -   1 rolling facility     -   2 heating furnace     -   3 sizing mill     -   4 rough rolling mill     -   5 intermediate universal rolling mill     -   8 finishing universal rolling mill     -   9 edger rolling mill     -   11 slab     -   13 H-shaped raw blank     -   14 intermediate material     -   16 H-shaped steel product     -   20 upper caliber roll (first caliber)     -   21 lower caliber roll (first caliber)     -   25, 26 projection (first caliber)     -   28, 29 split (first caliber)     -   30 upper caliber roll (second caliber)     -   31 lower caliber roll (second caliber)     -   35, 36 projection (second caliber)     -   38, 39 split (second caliber)     -   40 upper caliber roll (third caliber)     -   41 lower caliber roll (third caliber)     -   45, 46 projection (third caliber)     -   48, 49 split (third caliber)     -   50 upper caliber roll (fourth caliber)     -   51 lower caliber roll (fourth caliber)     -   55, 56 projection (fourth caliber)     -   58, 59 split (fourth caliber)     -   80 flange part     -   80 a inner surface (of flange part)     -   82 web part     -   82 a reduced portion     -   82 b raised part (unreduced portion)     -   85 upper caliber roll (fifth caliber)     -   85 a recessed part     -   86 lower caliber roll (fifth caliber)     -   86 a recessed part     -   95 upper caliber roll (sixth caliber)     -   96 lower caliber roll (sixth caliber)     -   K1 first caliber     -   K2 second caliber     -   K3 third caliber     -   K4 fourth caliber     -   K5 fifth caliber (web partial rolling caliber)     -   K6 sixth caliber (raised part eliminating caliber)     -   T production line     -   A material to be rolled 

1. A method for producing H-shaped steel, the method comprising: a rough rolling step; an intermediate rolling step; and a finish rolling step, wherein: the rough rolling step comprises: an edging rolling step of rolling and shaping a material to be rolled into a predetermined almost dog-bone shape; and a flat rolling step of performing rolling of a web part by rotating the material to be rolled after completion of the edging rolling step by 90° or 270°; upper and lower caliber rolls of at least one caliber of calibers configured to perform the flat rolling step comprise recessed parts configured to form a raised part at a middle of a web part of the material to be rolled, the recessed parts being provided at roll barrel length middle parts of the upper and lower caliber rolls; the caliber configured to perform the flat rolling step further comprises a raised part eliminating caliber configured to reduce the raised part and perform inner size widening of the web part of the material to be rolled on the material to be rolled in which the raised part is formed; rolling and shaping in the raised part eliminating caliber is performed on the material to be rolled after forming the raised part in the caliber having the recessed parts configured to form the raised part; and rolling and shaping of forming the raised part is not performed after a reduction of the raised part.
 2. The method for producing the H-shaped steel according to claim 1, wherein: the rolling and shaping in the raised part eliminating caliber is performed in a plurality of passes; and the rolling and shaping is performed in a state where a flange inner surface of the material to be rolled and a caliber roll are brought into contact with each other in at least one or more passes of the plurality of passes.
 3. The method for producing the H-shaped steel according to claim 1, wherein: the rolling and shaping in the raised part eliminating caliber is performed in a plurality of passes; and the rolling and shaping is performed in a state where a flange inner surface of the material to be rolled and a caliber roll are brought into contact with each other in a first pass of the plurality of passes.
 4. The method for producing the H-shaped steel according to claim 1, wherein in the rolling and shaping in the raised part eliminating caliber, elimination of the raised part is performed partially, and a remaining raised part is eliminated by rolling and shaping in an optional caliber at a subsequent stage.
 5. The method for producing the H-shaped steel according to claim 1, wherein a width of the raised part formed in the flat rolling step is set to 25% or more and 50% or less of a web part inner size of the material to be rolled.
 6. The method for producing the H-shaped steel according to claim 1, wherein a reduction ratio with respect to the raised part in the raised part eliminating caliber is 2.1 or less.
 7. The method for producing the H-shaped steel according to claim 1, wherein: the edging step is performed by a plurality of calibers, the number of the plurality of calibers being four or more; shaping in one or a plurality of passes is performed on the material to be rolled in the plurality of calibers; a first caliber and a second caliber of the plurality of calibers are formed with projections configured to create splits vertical to a width direction of the material to be rolled so as to form divided parts at end parts of the material to be rolled; and the calibers after a third caliber of the plurality of calibers are formed with projections configured to come into contact with the splits and sequentially bend the formed divided parts. 